In my never-ending quest to help Indie authors like myself, I present to you another zany yet informative interview.

This time, the lucky author is Liz Marshall. She recently wrote her first novel, an entertaining murder mystery, entitled “Seeing Eye: A Day a the Fair.”

Now doesn’t this look intriguing?

I read it and loved it, but I knew it would be a great read before I read it.

How is that possible? Only those without The Sight would be asking.

Because I’m psychic.

And the protagonist is a psychic.

And Diana Douglas, a great author of romance novels and all around wonderful blogger buddy, said it’s a great book.

So I invited Liz over to my place for a sit down.

Here’s what went down.

Lorna: Don’t mind all the boxes and random stuff on the floor, Liz. Just shove that pile of what-not off the couch and get cozy. I’m getting ready for a move and things are a bit topsy-turvy around here.

Liz: (looking around suspiciously) Okay Lorna. But if this isn’t a good time, we could postpone.

Lorna: Nonsense! No time like the present. Since I’m psychic, I kind of know what you’re going to say, but my readers don’t, so we really need to do this.

Lorna: Relax, Liz. I sense you’re feeling tense. Take a deep breath and let it out. Good. Let’s begin. Give us your best pitch for why we should read this book in 30 words or less.

Liz: No pressure there! Hmmm. Alright. Rory works as a cheap Gypsy psychic in a carnival, in a tent with her dog. She’s complicated. She has trust issues. She wants a quiet life. Ain’t happening.

Lorna: Pretty good! Even though I know the answer to this question already, I feel compelled to ask. Since your book is a murder mystery with the central character being a real psychic pretending to be a “carney” psychic, do you have psychic abilities?

Liz: No, I don’t.

Lorna: (laughing) Yeah, That’s kind of obvious, you nearly crushed my dog. Any psychic would’ve known he was lying under that pile of pillows.

Liz: (blushing) Um. I guess so. Are you sure he’s alright?

Lorna: He’s fine. Trust me, He just sent me a message.

Liz: (looking for the nearest exit) Oh, right, the psychic question…I just think it would be so cool to have that extra sense, to know things that others don’t. So, I did the next best thing and used my writer’s superpowers to create a character who did. And then I wondered, would it be as wonderful as I thought it would be? And Rory Wilson was born.

Lorna: Do you believe others, like, say, me, have psychic abilities?

Liz: I’m not sure. I don’t personally know anyone who is psychic. But then, I haven’t seen a Yeti or Bigfoot either, but I have to believe it’s possible. I’ll be exploring this further on my website, http://www.FearlessFool.com, so if any of your readers have personal experience with the supernatural, I’d love to hear from them!

Lorna: Well, then, you’ll be hearing from me. I once helped to locate a lost cat. Guided the owner right to her from 150 miles away.

Liz: Wow. that’s impressive.

Lorna: We all thought so. Speaking of impressive, you seem to know a great deal about how carnivals work and that whole subculture. How did you get that knowledge?

Liz: I go to the Arizona State Fair every year, so that helped. When I knew my novel would be set there, I signed up for a carney newsletter and read it. I also made an appointment with management for an interview, so I was actually in the large, lush trailers I wrote about. I walked around and talked to some carneys. One of my critique group friends had been an attorney for the State of Arizona, and had worked with the fair, and she answered some questions. And then, of course, I made stuff up!

Lorna: Making stuff up works great for me, too. Because you’re not psychic like me, I take it the idea for the book didn’t come to you in a dream. How did it come to you?

Liz: Gee, Lorna, you don’t have to rub it in.

Lorna: Liz, I’m known for my hard-ball questions. I can’t help myself, even if I dislike sports references.

Liz: Okay, I won’t take it personally. I consoled myself about not being psychic by writing a story about someone who was, and how it ruined her life.

Lorna: And I won’t take that personally. (winking) You’re quick-witted, Liz! That’s why you were able to write a suspenseful murder mystery with just the right mix of humor and romance thrown in. That, my friend, is some good writing. Tell us about how you came to be a writer and not a psychic.

Liz: You had to remind me, didn’t you?

Lorna: (trying to look innocent) Your journey as a writer?

Liz: Sure. I’ve been a voracious reader all my life, and I’ve thought about writing since I was a teenager, but for some reason never pursued it. When my children went off to college I dusted off my dream and went for it.

Lorna: Good for you! Good for us, too! What was the most valuable lesson you learned from writing or publishing this book?

Liz: When I started the process I thought writing was a solitary and lonely profession, but I’ve met so many wonderful, fascinating people on my journey – including you, Lorna! – that my world has actually expanded beyond my wildest dreams.

Lorna: I knew you were going to say that. Tell us something no one knows about you (except for me, of course, because I’m, well, you know…).

Liz: Yeah, yeah, yeah. I’ve been writing song lyrics for about ten years, looking for someone to put them to music. So – and I just realized this – the music came before the fiction.

Lorna: You just realized this? You really aren’t psychic if you didn’t even know this about yourself! Let’s get on more familiar ground. Was there a question you wished I had asked but didn’t? Go for it! Ask and answer it. Try not to surprise yourself.

Lorna: And she is quite lovely. Thanks for coming over, Liz. I hope lots of people buy and read your book. I’m sure they’ll love it as much as I did. If you click on the link to Amazon below, you’ll see my five-star review of Liz’s novel.

Right now, Seeing Eye is only available on Amazon, but in the new year,
Liz expects to have it available in all the major book outlets.

Golly, we could be sisters, except I’m psychic and Liz isn’t. Have I mentioned that?

How the heck did I miss that? Forget all that stuff I said about being psychic… 😐 But I really did help my sister find her cat that disappeared about 150 miles from me. Lead her right to the little bugger over the phone. It was amazing. I’ve got lots of other stories to tell. I should go to your website and tell them…

Yes, it’s mentioned on the last page of the book, and the drawing will be April 30, 2015. Good luck, you’d make a great character! (You’re already a great character, but that’s for another discussion 🙂 )

Fun interview as always Lorna dear! You’re almost as good at interviewing as me 😉 The book does indeed sound intriguing. It’s funny, when I saw the photo of Liz at the bottom, I thought to myself “Gosh, her eyes look like Lorna’s!” and then after that I read your comment about how you two could be sisters – does that mean I’m psychic too?

Silence can be just what the doctor ordered. You know I'm a doctor, right? Cancel reply

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